Gregor the Overlander: The Second Generation (I Own Nothing)
by ClocksAndAces
Summary: Seraphine considers herself as a normal person. This is, of course, until she discovers that her father is practically a king in an underground society, her mother is the queen, and she is a part of a prophecy.
1. Moving Day

Seraphine peered solemnly out her bedroom window. This would be the last time. The last time to gaze out upon her vast Virginian lawn, flowers and all. The last time to feel the icy window pane shoot frigid fire through her tender fingertips. The last time to smell vanilla coffee grounds with a hint of pine. Today, to Seraphine, represented the last time for anything in life. Moving was the hardest thing she had ever done. Although, if I may add, it did not stay that way for long.

Seraphine peeled herself from the frosty glass and glowered at her once lively bedroom. The walls had been stripped of vibrant posters and the bed seemed naked without her heaps of pillows and sheets. Small trinkets that littered floors and shelves were shoved into boxes and put into storage, along with an innumerable amount of books. Her books. Each leather bound adventure held a new life for Seraphine to uncover. She couldn't help herself, but devour every book she stumbled across. Well, at least every book that wasn't Twilight. Most books were strewn over her shelves, floor, and anywhere in general. The fact that her stories had been removed emptied the space a great deal.

The room she was standing in wasn't her own. It didn't hold the same wonder, the same fantasy. But this no longer mattered, Seraphine reminded herself, She had promised her dad that she would be mature about moving. So she embraced her oncoming adulthood and grew up, though it was much harder than it seemed.

Seraphine moved to pick up her box of extra personal belongings, but before she could grasp the cardboard firmly, a flash of brown flew across her line of vision. Seraphine's head snapped in the direction of the unknown object. To her surprise, it was only a cockroach. She had grown used to them scurrying about her bedroom, and lately developed a soft spot for the creatures. Her father Gregor on the other hand, was frightened more by cockroaches than death itself. Every time one would make his own way across the hallway, her dad's eyes would flit about in a mad sort of way. He would wring his hands furiously and his breathing accelerated.

Seraphine never quite understood her dad's fear. In her eyes, it was much more than something that frightened Gregor. Those miniscule creatures tore through her father's skin and crawled into secrets that had been buried deeper than one can imagine. In fact, Seraphine wasn't quite sure if what her dad experienced could be identified as fear at all. To her it looked like overwhelming sorrow and guilt. Which made completely zero sense to her. How could such a minute creature conjure up such terror, such... destruction.

The young woman, out of sympathy, gingerly slid the cockroach onto her palm and placed it gently near the hole in the wall.

"Shoo! Shoo!" Seraphine whispered with a slight smile tugging at the edges of her lips. "Get! Before my father sees you!"

After the little insect made its way into the hole in the wall, Seraphine stood up and brushed off her tattered boyfriend jeans. She did a 360 and drank in her comatose bedroom.

"This is good bye," The sixteen year old sighed as she snatched her cardboard box from the floor. On the way out the door she switched off the lights and seized her Converse high tops from the floor.

Seraphine walked briskly towards her father's Toyota Sprinter Trueno. Its engine coughed and choked. She gave the car handle a good tug and collapsed into the passenger seat. Seraphine shoved her belongings under the glove box and wrenched on her too small sneakers.

"Say goodbye for the last time," Gregor suggested with a slight smile playing across his lips. The girl just glanced forlornly at her father then stared quietly out the window.

"Where are we going?" Seraphine inquired after thirty minutes of driving in silence.

"That's not for you to worry about." Her father replied in an agitated tone. His eyes never left the road.

"But that's the thing! It IS something I should worry about."

"No, it's not. And don't give me attitude about it either!" Gregor answered while casting an angry glance at Seraphine. She let out a defeated UGH, and shifted away from her father.

 _Why is he always so secretive?!_ The young woman pondered. _Will he ever tell me anything?_ She scanned her Gregor's dilapidated complexion. Wrinkles overtook the majority of his face. Hefty bags had formed beneath his crystal blue eyes. His chin supplied the slightest whisper of facial hair. Seraphine didn't remember him looking so worn down. _Had he always been this way?_

She examined her own reflection in the window. Her lengthy snow white hair was one of her strongest features. She had tan skin and an extremely thin frame. Seraphine considered herself extremely normal. She wasn't pretty, but she wasn't ugly either, just normal. The young woman made eye contact with her reflection and became entranced in her own amethyst eyes. They stood out like a flower in December.

Although, her irises may be a great beauty, they also brought a deep sadness out of hiding. She couldn't help but let her mind wonder to the mother she'd never known. When she was younger, Seraphine would make believe that her mother was a princess somewhere off in England with pretty purple eyes and dresses beyond compare. But, now that adulthood came to play, she made the assumption that her mom gave birth and ran. Or died. She didn't dare ask.

Gregor never talked about his wife. If she happened to be mentioned, her father's wrinkles crawled deeper in his skin and his eyes became laced with depression.

Seraphine looked forwards at the road. She hated thinking about her dad in a terrible mood. She hated thinking about her mom. She hated moving. She hated sadness. But most of all, she hated secrets.

Suddenly, a vague shape formed farther down the lonely highway. As the car drew closer to the man sized object, tails, ears, and beady red eyes became distinct. The young woman could've sworn it was an oversized rat.

"Hey dad what is.." Seraphine looked over at Gregor. He was asleep. He was asleep! She glanced back at the road. The figure grew nearer.

"DAD!"

CRASH!


	2. A Series of Unfortunate Events

A swift kick forced Seraphine's eyes open. She regarded her surrounds whilst peeling her face off of the asphalt. There was no sign of anything living, but one glimpse at the demolished car decaying behind her brought a tsunami of pain.

The crash. The explosion of glass. Skidding across the pavement. It was all too familiar to Seraphine. She gingerly fingered the scathing gash on her cheek.

"Anybody got a Band-Aid?" The young girl asked sarcastically through clenched teeth.

"Sorry hun, I just ran out." a raspy voice replied in a playful tone. Seraphine jumped, for she had not expected an answer. The young woman craned her neck in search for a body that matched the voice. Nothing but pavement and wild vegetation.

"Come out!" Seraphine ordered while she took to kneeling in a wobbly sort of motion. The pressure on the young girl's knees painted a grimace on her face, but she bit her cheek and struggled through it.

"Don't do that. You'll kill yourself." A rustling emerged from the bushes. Seraphine heard footsteps approaching.

"No I wo-" She stopped short. The creature that stood growling in front of her was nothing man had ever seen. With bulbous, sandy ears, and beady black eyes, the beast before her resembled a... rat. It appeared 6 feet tall and bore mocha brown fur with the slightest tinge of gray. Spindly fingers crawled out from the monster's palms. Seraphine stood sluggishly and faced the giant head on. Its menacing teeth threatened her silently. She took a step back and gaped.

"What? Is there something on my face?" The beast inquired. From what Seraphine could see, there was an overabundant amount of blood dripping down its chin, but she held her tongue.

"Ah, the silent type. That's helpful..." The oversized rat trailed off.

"Who are you and what do you want?" Seraphine challenged with all of the courage she could muster.

"I am Ripred the mighty rat, and it is crucial that I speak with your father."

 _Gregor!_ The girl's heart raced and her eyes widened in terror. _Where are you dad?_ She took one last quizzical glance at Ripred and tore towards the obliterated vehicle. Her blood coursed through her veins at lightning speeds. Seraphine's vision blurred as she ripped the automobile apart. It did not occur to the young woman what a feat of strength this was.

After minutes of digging through piles of debris, she discovered her father's corpse. She seized it from the rubble and placed him tenderly on the asphalt.

"Why... why you?" The girl whispered through sobs. She lay there for an eternity next to her father. His wispy gray hair was lathered in blood. His face was solemn and a hefty maroon stain extended from the fragment of glass that had embedded itself in his chest. Seraphine gathered wild flowers and created a bouquet for her father.

"Goodbye." She stood hastily, forgetting about her pain, and moved towards the rat that had been watching nearby. Were those tears she saw in his eyes? No. He was a man-sized rodent. IT did not have the capacity for emotions.

"Sorry to disappoint, but he won't be meeting with you any time soon." Seraphine sniffled. She took a step closer, making sure that Ripred saw the hatred boiling within her soul. _This was all his fault._

"I understand you hate me, but I am just as sad as you about this." Ripred pleaded. He momentarily wiped beneath his eye. "Wanting to kill me will not help you."

"I-I should call the police or something."

"No, you shouldn't. That would be extremely stupid."

"What else am I supposed to do?" Seraphine argued whilst taking a step back.

"You should... come with me! Luxa would know what to do..." Ripred trailed off once more.

"I'm not going with you! You killed my dad! And who is Luxa?"

Ripred snapped.

"I did NOT kill your father." The rodent replied in a dangerously quiet tone. "You will come with m-."

Seraphine didn't wait for him to finish. She raced off in the opposite direction of her father. Doing her best to ignore to the fire in her legs, she sprinted down the pavement. The morning sun beat down on her neck and sweat enveloped her skin. Ever so often she took a swift glimpse backward, searching for any sign of Ripred. Nothing.

Seraphine ceased dashing and began walking after about four minutes. The young girl took this time to think about what would happen.

"First I should probably find a payphone and call the police." Seraphine planned aloud. " When I get back to Virginia, I could probably stay at my old house until the police find some sort of relative I could stay with." As the young girl discussed her future with herself, she did not notice the creature looming before her.

"Hopefully they will be willing to let me live with the-" Suddenly she hit a wall of brown and gray fur. Seraphine stiffened.

A familiar raspy voice growled,"For the record, I'm a lot faster than you."


End file.
